I have already pointed out that it is precisely the outdated numbers rehashed over and over again in the links provided in the post appended below that have be shown to be inaccurate in many subsequent research articles in JAMA and other prestigious medical journals. I have already provided some of these references in my previous posts in this thread. I would be happy to provide copies of these articles if anyone is interested and writes to me privately asking for them.
A most significant fact regarding this issue is the fact that the main author, Dr. Troyen Brennan, of the original studies from which the numbers claimed below are extrapolated, has cautioned that these exaggerated numbers are unscientific and unwarranted. Here is his article in the New England Journal of Medicine, entitled "The Institute of Medicine Report on Medical Errors — Could It Do Harm?", arguing this notion: http://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJM200004133421510 Here are the pertinent excerpts from it: QUOTE The combination of the strikingly large numbers of errors cited by the report and the connotations of the word “error” create an impression that is not warranted by the scientific work underlying the IOM report. UNQUOTE QUOTE ...my colleagues and I have cautioned against drawing conclusions about the numbers of deaths in these studies UNQUOTE QUOTE ...neither study cited by the IOM as the source of data on the incidence of injuries due to medical care involved judgments by the physicians reviewing medical records about whether the injuries were caused by errors. Indeed, there is no evidence that such judgments can be made reliably. UNQUOTE QUOTE Is there reason to believe that hospital care has become safer? The answer is yes, at least over particular periods for particular procedures....For many common procedures, mortality rates declined in the 1960s and 1970s. For more sophisticated operations, such as cardiac surgery, the rates continue to decline. These changes have occurred because surgeons have continuously sought to improve techniques, share information, and report the results of clinical studies. The reduction in mortality rates is due in large part to technological advances, but it is also due to simple attention to surgical practice. Surgical training has always emphasized a commitment to details, systematic thinking, and intolerance of failure — the hallmarks of approaches to the prevention of errors. This is anything but the “cycle of inaction” that the IOM notes. An important part of the medical ethic is the improvement of care, which most physicians and hospitals take very seriously. I do not mean to imply that all hospitals perform at optimal levels or that we should not be scrutinizing the effects of new management techniques on the quality of care. Indeed, the profession should welcome a renewed emphasis on safety, but it is inaccurate to suggest that safety has been overlooked. UNQUOTE ...Dr. Troyen Brennan, M.D., J.D., M.P.H. Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA Cheers, Santosh --- On Sun, 4/24/11, U. G. Barad <[email protected]> wrote: > > The JOURNAL of the AMERICAN MEDICAL > ASSOCIATION (JAMA) Vol 284, No 4, > July 26th 2000 article written by Dr Barbara Starfield, MD, > MPH, of > the Johns Hopkins School of Hygiene and Public Health, > shows that > medical errors is the 3rd leading cause of death in the > United States. > > The report apparently shows there are 2,000 deaths/year > from > unnecessary surgery; 7000 deaths/year from medication > errors in > hospitals; 20,000 deaths/year from other errors in > hospitals; 80,000 > deaths/year from infections in hospitals; 106,000 > deaths/year from > non-error, adverse effects of medications - these total up > to 225,000 > deaths per year in the US from iatrogenic causes which > ranks these > deaths as the # 3 killer. Iatrogenic is a term used when a > patient > dies as a direct result of treatments by a physician, > whether it is > from misdiagnosis of the ailment or from adverse drug > reactions used > to treat the illness. (Drug reactions are the most common > cause). > > Full text can be read at: > http://www.arachnoiditis.info/news/news_story_0011.html > > > The above findings of Dr Barbara Starfield, MD are also > backed by: > > Myth: The U.S. has the best health care system in the > world. Fact: The > U.S. has among the worst health statistics of all rich > nations. > > http://www.huppi.com/kangaroo/L-healthcare.htm > > The National Academies website published an article titled > "Preventing > Death and Injury from Medical Errors Requires Dramatic, > System-Wide > Changes." which you can read online at > > http://www4.nationalacademies.org/news.nsf/isbn/0309068371?OpenDocument > > One of the first JAMA article on medical errors appeared in > JAMA > 1994;272:1851-7. by Leape LL. Then in April 1998, JAMA 1998 > Apr > 15;279(15):1200-5 > > Schuster M, McGlynn E, Brook R. How good is the quality of > health care > in the United States? Milbank Q. 1998;76:517-563. > > Phillips D, Christenfeld N, Glynn L. Increase in US > medication-error > deaths between 1983 and 1993. Lancet. 1998;351:643-644. > > United States Now Has One of the Worst Infant Mortality > Rates in the > Developed World. > http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/445085/united_states_now_has_one_of_the_worst.html?cat=25 > > Preventable Deaths for selected countries. (U.S. Rated > 14th). > http://www.allcountries.org/ranks/preventable_deaths_country_ranks_1997-1998_2002-2003_2008.html > > Best regards, > > U. G. Barad >
